Laser microphones are often seen as the pinnacle of spy technology as you don't have to install a transmitter to hear what's going in a building. Instead a laser beam is projected onto a window and bounced back—sound waves from the voices in the target room are picked up with the laser beam and bounced back to your…

Spy Week may be coming to an end, but that doesn't mean you can't continue your training in the arts of espionage. One of the most exciting parts of being a spy is the gear. This weekend, put together your own kit.

Easier than you think. As YouTube has proven, even little kids can pick a lock. Make sure that your deadbolt isn't dead-easy to crack open. The DIY experts at Stack Exchange offer answers on keeping your deadbolt locked tight.

If you have an old smartphone lying around, put it to good use by turning it into a tracking device so you can recover your bike or other property if it gets stolen. The magic ingredient here is Prey, the free laptop, tablet, and smartphone tracking app.

The Sparrows UNCUFF LINK cufflinks look like normal accessories when they're in your sleeves, but pop them out and you can use them to unlock and open any pair of standard handcuffs, thanks to the key engineered into the body. We're not going to ask how you got into those cuffs in the first place, but no good…

Encrypted messages, fancy technology, spies use them all to communicate, but sometimes the best way to hide is in plain sight. Right now, broadcasting across the airwaves around the world, are automated, anonymous shortwave AM radio stations that most governments won't acknowledge even exist, much less explain. Best…

This week on the podcast we're talking all about spying, lying, and boosting your powers of observation and deduction. We're also answering your questions about the quirks of Windows 8 laptops, getting better photo prints, and buying your smartphone contract-free.

Perhaps you’re saving a child from a burning building, or perhaps you’re breaking into the stronghold of an enemy spy—but one way or another, you have to break down a door. Weblog The Art of Manliness shows us how to do it effectively and safely.

If there's one spy skill we all envy, it's the Sherlock Holmes-like ability to quickly read a situation and come up with a theory that explains it (like the toothpaste stain that reveals your co-worker overslept, or the nervous twitch that shows your friend drank too much). Luckily, anyone can hone these same skills,…

Body language reveals a lot about a person, and it is often more honest than verbal communication. Certain areas of the body are more expressive than others—the shoulders being one of them. As former FBI counterintelligence agent Joe Navarro explains, the shoulders can tell us if a person is lying, reveal hidden…

If James Bond logs on to a computer, he doesn't want to leave a bunch of files, cookies, or his IP address out there for someone to find. It might seem extreme, but sometimes it's a good idea to take the same precautions yourself.

There are fewer opportunities to put your social engineering skills to the test better than trying to convince someone you work at their establishment. Whether you just want to serve yourself a drink refill at a restaurant or you want to surprise your significant other with a birthday bouquet, here's how to get in…

There's little more frightening than the sneaking suspicion that someone may be following you, whether it's on foot or in a car. Here's how you can tell whether that person behind you is watching you as much as you're watching them.

If you have a digital safe with a passcode entry, a few things could go wrong. You could forget the code, the electronic mechanism could fail, or someone could change the code without you knowing. In the event you need to break into your own electronic safe, here's how to do it.

In the movies, right after a spy loads up on gadgets, they get their "cover identity," or the person they should pretend to be to get behind enemy lines or into the villain's lair. You can use cover identities too, whether you want to blend in with the locals while traveling, negotiate on your boss's behalf, impress…

It's not usually a good idea to quickly judge someone based on a quick glance, but Psychology Today points out that in some cases—especially when your safety is potentially threatened—it's good to go with your gut when you view someone as possibly aggressive.

When spies need to make sure their colleagues get a package or a signal without anyone else knowing, they leave a dead drop in a specific location and trust that another spy—ideally the one they need to communicate with—will retrieve the package. You don't have to be a spy to make use of dead drops though: they can…

There's more to hiding your valuables than making them hard to find. Whether you're hiding a money stash from burglars or secret documents from an enemy spy, here are a few tips anyone can use to keep something under wraps.

Handcuffs are expensive, so zip ties are often used as a cheaper and fairly effective way of binding someone's wrists. If you find yourself bound by the annoying plastic, here's an easy way to break free.